The Last Journals of David Livingstone, in Central Africa, from 1865 to His Death, Volume I (of 2), 1866-1868Livingstone, David
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The Last Journals of David Livingstone, in Central Africa, from 1865 to His Death, Volume I (of 2), 1866-1868
Livingstone, David
Africa, Central -- Description and travel
The people look very poor, having few or no beads; the ornaments being
lines and cuttings on the skin. They trust more to buaze than cotton.
I noticed but two cotton patches. The women are decidedly plain; but
monopolize all the buaze cloth. Theresa was excessively liberal, and
having informed us that Zomba lived some distance up the range and was
not the principal man in these parts, we, to avoid climbing the hills,
turned away to the north, in the direction of the paramount chief,
Chisumpi, whom we found to be only traditionally great.
_20th October, 1866._--In passing along we came to a village embowered
in fine trees; the headman is Kaveta, a really fine specimen of the
Kanthunda, tall, well-made, with a fine forehead and Assyrian nose. He
proposed to us to remain over night with him, and I unluckily
declined.
Convoying us out a mile, we parted with this gentleman, and then came
to a smith's village, where the same invitation was given and refused.
A sort of infatuation drove us on, and after a long hot march we found
the great Chisumpi, the facsimile in black of Sir Colin Campbell; his
nose, mouth, and the numerous wrinkles on his face were identical with
those of the great General, but here all resemblance ceased. Two men
had preceded us to give information, and when I followed I saw that
his village was one of squalid misery, the only fine things about
being the lofty trees in which it lay. Chisumpi begged me to sleep at
a village about half a mile behind: his son was browbeating him on
some domestic affair, and the older man implored me to go. Next
morning he came early to that village, and arranged for our departure,
offering nothing, and apparently not wishing to see us at all. I
suspect that though paramount chief, he is weak-minded, and has lost
thereby all his influence, but in the people's eyes he is still a
great one.
Several of my men exhibiting symptoms of distress, I inquired for a
village in which we could rest Saturday and Sunday, and at a distance
from Chisumpi. A headman volunteered to lead us to one west of this.
In passing the sepulchral grove of Chisumpi our guide remarked,
"Chisumpi's forefathers sleep there." This was the first time I have
heard the word "sleep" applied to death in these parts. The trees in
these groves, and around many of the villages, are very large, and
show what the country would become if depopulated.
We crossed the Diampwe or Adiampwe, from five to fifteen yards wide,
and well supplied with water even now. It rises near the Ndomo
mountains, and flows northwards into the Lintipe and Lake. We found
Chitokola's village, called Paritala, a pleasant one on the east side
of the Adiampwe Valley. Many elephants and other animals feed in the
valley, and we saw the Bechuana Hopo[32] again after many years.
The Ambarre, otherwise Nyumbo plant, has a pea-shaped, or rather
papilionaceous flower, with a fine scent. It seems to grow quite wild;
its flowers are yellow.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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